Murakami to host special radio show about music, marathons

Tokyo, June 5 (IANS) Popular Japanese author Haruki Murakami is set to host a special radio show about music and marathons, his two big passions in life, starting in August, Japanese publisher Shincho said in a statement on Tuesday.

The author of “Norwegian Wood” (1981) is a fan of classical music, jazz and rock and will talk about the influence of the genres on his work as well as his love for running on Tokyo FM, reports Efe news.

Named “Run and Songs”, the show will be launched on August 5, with the author discussing some of the tunes he listens to while running every morning.

The programme’s idea comes from an online forum run by Murakami for three months in 2015, answering the concerns and curiosities of his readers, which he later complied in the book “Murakami San No Tokoro” (Murakami’s Place).

Until June 10, listeners will be able to send their questions to the author through a website opened by the radio station.

Murakami’s passion for music led him to work in a record store and to run a jazz club for many years.

He regularly references songs and artists – the Beatles, for example – in his work such as “Dance, Dance, Dance” (1988) or the more recent “Killing Commendatore” (2017), where Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni serves as a soundtrack.